A green way to raise money for St Catherine's Hospice

A grandma has taken the hair-raising step of shaving her head in honour of her best friend - but not before spraying it bright green to represent the colours of St Catherine’s Hospice.

Jane Cooper has raised around £1,000 in sponsorship for the charity which cared for her childhood friend Ann McIntyre.

Jane Cooper prepares for her head shave with an army of supporters

She invited a team of hers and Ann’s family and friends to the new St Catherine’s charity shop in her hometown of Bamber Bridge, where she showed off her bright green hair before getting it chopped.

Jane said: “I remember going with Ann to get her hair shaved when she was going through chemotherapy.

“It was the only time I saw her cry – so I did this for her.”

Ann, a retired school cook and mother-of-two from Chorley, was referred to the Lostock Hall hospice’s inpatient unit in February 2012, after being diagnosed with bowel cancer which had spread to her liver.

Jane Cooper having her head shaved for St Catherine's Hospice

The 60-year-old was cared for at St Catherine’s for two and a half days, and died surrounded by her friends and family, including Jane.

Jane, a 66-year-old retired primary school teacher, said: “We had been best friends for 47 years – we met at school, so we had lots of laughs and a lot of happy memories together.

“Ann was the bossy one and always got the nicest blokes. She knew what she wanted and she was always in front. She was a good sister, mum and daughter.”

Jane’s sister-in-law Julie Cooper, who works as a hairdresser, did the honours cutting Jane’s hair at the store on Station Road, with friends and family clapping and cheering at the results.

Jane added: “I feel great. But I am going to wash the green out.

“I’d like to thank everyone for sponsoring me, and give a special thanks to my daughter Beth Darer for helping me raise the money.”